Tight Ropes
by creepbox
Summary: SPOILERS! AU Set after episode 13 (season 4). Daryl is helplessly wandering to find Beth, but instead of stumbling upon the gang of hunters he runs into a woman. She is stuck and needs his help and soon Daryl will need her help. They will need to rely on each other to survive and figure out their problems. There is only so much two people can do during the end of the world.


**Disclaimer:** Simply put, I don't own the walking dead, I only own my character. Just burrowing the fantastic story to create :)

**Note:** In my story the band of hunters that Daryl joins doesn't exist or aren't trying to kill Rick. It just works with what I have planned. Sorry if this offends anyone!

**Chapter 1**

And this was life; boots muddy, clothes completely soaked, and myself gasping for air. Keeping my balance was proven difficult as it was hard not to slide around in the mud or the deep puddles. The heels of my boots kicked up mud all over the backs of my sopping jeans as I ran further and further away. The rain made it impossible to see five feet in front of you. Anything further and it looked blurry and surreal just looked like an oil painting. _Just Breathe_. This was all I could think about in the given moment. My heart was beating fast as I tried to catch my breath, but it seemed to slip further away from me the harder I tried.

The moaning and snarls from behind were getting louder. I tried to force all the discouraging thoughts out of my head. I needed to focus on the environment in front of me. An old building stood tall in the distance but I hoped it was closer. My legs were burning and the hair on the back of my neck sent chills down my spine. Was it possible that I was just in reach its fleshy grip? I shuddered at the thought and shoved it to the back of my mind as I forced myself to stay focused on the building in front of me. It was an old, two-story, and square brick building. Maybe an insurance office before the end of the world happened. Windows were broken and the chain link fence was pushed over in the front. Luckily, a decent sized hole was in the side of the building a little after where the fence was pushed down. I could run over the fence and into the building, find the stairs, and then climb up to the roof of the building. A part of me screamed that this was a suicide mission, that if I followed through with this I was going to get myself killed. There was a very high possibility that there would be more of those walking corpses inside. And after the little situation I found myself in earlier, I've ran weaponless through the pouring rain ever since. As bad as situations have gone for me so far, if there was the slightest chance there weren't any of those _things_ inside, then that left the possibility that the stair case would be damaged. Or even worse, there wouldn't be a ladder to the roof of the building. And if this was the case, I would just be cornering myself as fresh meat…

I found myself swallowing nothing but my own indecisiveness. If I didn't take this risk I was going to die. These things never get tired! They just mindlessly follow you no matter how far or fast you go. I on the other hand will get tired and eventually slow down. I huffed harder and internally yelled at my legs to move faster. My legs grew numb, but I just sprinted faster. My brow furrowed with determination and fear. My brain ceased all thoughts, and finally my instincts kicked in. I hopped onto the fence and carefully made my way over it. The fence creaked under my feet and it wobbled as I sprinted across it. I leapt off the chains and continued to the hole. I barely had time to make out the stairs from all the rubble scattered on the floor; however, the dark oak stairs were right there in front of me. I practically skipped towards the stairs and flew up them. Luck was on my side. The upstairs was almost like a loft. A small, yet long murky room with large metal desks, brown computer chairs, and papers tossed carelessly all around the room. Probably due to the wind that was howling through the partly opened windows. There was a ladder that led to the roof, right on the other side of the room. My stomach quite literally flipped for joy in that moment. On my way through the middle of the room I felt something grab my ankle. Fear flushed its way onto my face so fast it made me dizzy. I could hear my pursuers moaning and groaning up the stairs. They were getting closer.

I looked down at the rotted limb holding my leg. The limb was so decayed and torn apart it was hard to tell what it actually looked like. Just a mess of greys and browns mixed together to create a disgusting hue. Half of the corps' body was stuck underneath a desk. It could barely move and it felt weak as it tried to pull me closer to its mouth. Its big mouth snapped at me, trying to rip apart the flesh behind my jean clad legs. My other leg came up instinctively and forced my foot into its head with absurd strength. It cracked and squished beneath my boot causing brain matter to fling everywhere. About three of them had made their way through the doorway, and without even thinking I turned around towards the ladder. My hands gripped the metal bars and forced my body to climb as fast as I could. Every muscle in my body hurt, yet they were burning with fire and adrenaline. I pushed the ceiling door open with a little bit of a struggle, but it opened with a pop and a creak. As soon as I was up, I shoved the little door shut I immediately fell backwards on my butt and stared at the door. Half expecting it to fly open, I sat and waited as I listened to their snarls echoing up though the closed hatch. I sat there for a while, it felt like days, just staring at the door not believe it was the only thing keeping me safe. My breathing felt ragged and my shoulders were bobbing up and down. I brought my dirty fingers to my cheeks and felt the warm wetness swirl of rain and tears. I was crying. When did that happen? I harshly wiped away the tears and sniffed. It was not a time to cry.

There were only two things I was good at; finding peace when a bow was in my hands and getting myself in horrible trouble. I looked around the roof. I was alive but I was also trapped. I had no food, weapons or even shelter. I didn't even have anything to catch the rain with to have water. This might have been the dumbest thing I have ever done, I thought. I looked up into the sky and forced out my breath that I was holding in. The rain felt cold on my face and showed no sign of stopping anytime soon. The rain drops slid down my face and onto my clothes. My bare arms grew goose bumps and my shirt awkwardly sat flush against my body.

I ran my hand against my face and got up from the hard ground. Thinking it would be a good idea to look at my surroundings, I walked over to the side of the roof. It was still hard to see with all this rain but I could still make out the forms of things. The forest on the other side of the street looked even more dense and scary from the view above the tree line. The road had a few of those snarling beasts on it but not as many that were now in the room underneath me. I could hear them. The screaming and moaning never seemed to stop. They were just crying out to me, wanting me, wanting my flesh. I grimaced at the thought. There was nothing out there for me, nothing to save me. I may be alive now but I was probably going to die. While it wouldn't be from a bite, but it would probably be from starvation. Then I would just become one of those things anyway. I've seen it before.

I looked away from the road. I walked over to the opposite corner of the roof and sat down, leaning my back against a metal cooling vent, and closing my eyes as I rubbed my temples. Why do I always get myself into trouble? I wouldn't be in this mess if it wasn't for me. I should've kept quiet when James and I argued. If only I just appreciated my brother's two-cents, he would still be here. I sighed. My muddy, soaking black jeans came into view as I opened my sore eyes. I lost everything; clothes, backpack, and even the picture of James and I. I glared at the hatch door. Bastards. I shook the thoughts from my head and brought my legs to my chest. I was starting to get really cold and if I really was going to be here forever then I probably should try to conserve my body heat. I cuddled myself in the corner and tried to become as small as I possibly could. My limbs were starting to throb from all the extreme physical work. But as I shut my eyes I realized how tired I was. I could feel the natural chemicals from sleep coursing through my body. In that tiny moment it felt amazing and every worry in the world fluttered away. My mouth stretched wide into a yawn and soon sleep finally overtook my body.

The birds were chirping. They were singing a lullaby for me to wake up. I wanted to tell them to shut up, and give me five more minutes of sleep. The morning light blinded me and it took quite a bit for my eyes to adjust. But when I opened my eyes all the misery and pain hit me hard. From head to toe everything hurt. When I finally stretched out and opened my eyes, everything screamed and throbbed. It felt like a horrible hangover. What I wouldn't give for some alcohol, I laughed at the thought. My stomach grumbled so hard it made me slightly groan.

"I know," I quietly said to my stomach while patting it. Frowning as I noticed it was more ribs than a stomach. Sadly, before this all happened I struggled with my weight. I was never skinny, just always a slight plump. Now there I sat, skinnier than I have ever been and wishing for some of my plumpness back. When I looked in the dirty mirror back at the old house James and I were at, I didn't recognize myself anymore. James used to tease about my baby face, but when I looked in that mirror, my face was nothing but hallows and sharp angles. My once round face looked long and pointy like an unfed super model. The only thing I had on me was just skin and muscle. I stood up and stretched out. My joints popped and my muscles were less then reluctant to move at first, but after a few stretches they finally seemed fluid enough to move without pain. My clothes were finally dry since the sun was out. It felt good against my skin after last night.

There was some rustling from the woods. Whatever it was I could hear it from the roof. I walked over and peeked over the half wall. It was quiet and nothing seemed to happen. All the rotting corpses that were chasing me seemed to crawl their way back to the road. I strained my ears to listen below me for any signs of movement or groaning. Luckily there wasn't any noise. Maybe it was just more of those things again in the forest. Right before I was about to look away a man wandered out of the forest. His hair was shaggy and dark brown, he was quite muscular, and looked fairly tall. He wore ripped, faded black jeans, a black button up top with the sleeves cut off, and a black leather vest. I had to squint but from what I could tell it looked like he had dead squirrels attached to his belt. He quickly, yet silently, made his way over to the wandering monsters. He had a crossbow and was incredibly skilled with it. Every shot landed into a rotten skull without effort. A flood of mixed feelings ran through me; fear, happiness, and desperation. He took out the dead with ease and fast.

Once they were all dead I swallowed hard, "excuse me!"

He aimed his crossbow without hesitation right at me, so I put my hands up to let him know I was harmless. "Who are you?" His voice was gruff and very southern.

"Please I need help. I'm stuck up here." I said as I stood up a little more so he could see me a bit better.

"How'd you manage that?" He still kept the crossbow aimed at me.

"I got chased in here by a bunch of those dead things. I don't have any weapons so I trapped myself."

He slightly lowered the crossbow. He seemed to stare at me for a while before he shook his head and made his way towards the building. Finally hope seeped through my bones.

**Thank you** for reading! If you have any feedback you would like me to know, please feel free to review! There will be more so sit tight! Again, thank you for reading! I appreciate it!


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